Employee burnout is a growing issue in the modern workplace, where fewer employees can accomplish much more work with the help of computerization, the Internet and mobile technology. You, as an employer, must know how to recognize and prevent employee burnout; otherwise, your highly productive employees can be eventually overwhelmed and suffer from the stress of their fast-paced jobs. When you are aware of the possibility of burnout, you are not only addressing the physical and mental health of your employees, but also protecting your business’ most important assets as well as the future success of everyone.

To recognize employee burnout, experts in this field suggest that you look first for less productivity, especially among workers that have excellent productivity track records. Highly productive employees are typically self-motivated, so when their work falls below their usual high standards, burnout may be the cause. You may also notice an increase in arriving late, leaving exactly at the end of the “official” day or asking to leave early. Employees with burnout may also take longer breaks and suddenly be absent more often. There may be other reasons for these changes in employee behavior—personal, family and/or financial problems—so you shouldn’t hesitate to schedule a time to talk with employees to determine the exact causes and help them address their issues or problems.

If you discover that burnout is the culprit, then consider implementing any of the following ideas to help prevent or alleviate the burnout.

• Rotate or change employees’ work schedules. Track your employees’ productivity throughout the day and ask them when they think they are the most productive. Change their schedule, so the morning people can start early and those, whose energy peak during the afternoon or evening, perform the bulk of their work during those time periods.
• Implement or expand training opportunities. Not only does this help to break the routine of the workday, but also you benefit from better-trained, newly motivated employees.
• Remind your employees of the incentives and bonuses they can learn if they maintain a high level of productivity.
• Energize your employees with a surprise company holiday or employee event outside the workplace.
• Conduct regular employee evaluations. Praise those employees who are highly productive and provide training and special incentives for those who are falling short.

Address employee burnout before the fire starts and you’ll retain more of your best employees and provide motivation, so the mediocre ones perform better.

Employees with bad attitudes are nothing new in the workplace. New employees may discover that they are not integrating into their new jobs or establishing relationships with co-workers as they expected. Major company changes, such as new ownership, can be so disruptive for some employees that they react with bad attitudes. Other employees may be experiencing personal issues and bringing the resulting bad attitudes caused by those issues into the workplace.

That is why employers that develop, implement and focus on a process to address bad attitudes are more successful at helping employees and improving the workplace culture.

• The first step is to have a positive attitude when discussing the issue with an employee; and then explain that the meeting is meant to be constructive, by providing examples of the employee’s negative behavior. Part of the employer’s positive attitude is to avoid judging the employee’s character.
• The second step is to develop an agreement with the employee that allows him or her to be part of that plan to improve his or her attitude.
• The third step is to explain that you won’t be disciplining the employee as a result of your first meeting.
• The fourth step, which you hope isn’t necessary, is to meet with the employee again, if, after a week, he or she doesn’t seem to make an effort to change. Review the specific behaviors that are still evident and ask if there is a specific reason or reasons they haven’t improved. This second meeting is where you may learn that personal issues are the cause. Revise your agreement with the employee if necessary and be encouraging.
• The fifth step is a third meeting with the employee to explain that he or she has only one more opportunity to change his or her attitude. Also, clearly explain the disciplinary actions you could take that should be documented in your employee handbook.
• The sixth step is to observe the employee closely during the next week, and then have a “final” meeting with the employee and apply the consequences of no improvement. In may cases, an employee that doesn’t want to improve won’t and termination is your only action.

Detailing this process in your employee handbook protects both employers and employees, and makes it more likely that bad attitudes disappear quickly.

As with all labor management issues, absenteeism can be legally and more easily managed when employers start with a clearly documented policy in their employee handbooks. In most workplaces, employee absenteeism has a direct effect on the bottom line. Productivity can be hindered, so workflow doesn’t move at a required rate, and employers are faced with paying more overtime and possibly hiring temporary workers.

The following details are what make an absenteeism policy clear and consistent.

• Stating exactly how much absenteeism is allowed before it affects employees’ wages and/or what disciplinary practices could be applied.
• Describing excused and unexcused absences.
• Maintain accurate attendance and absence records.
• Be consistent, but flexible.
• Make sure employees understand that absences, including sick leave, is not the same as vacation or personal leave.
• Apply a three-step disciplinary process if the absenteeism becomes progressively worse. It starts with a discussion with the absentee employee, moves to a written statement, and then concludes with offering the employee to either comply with the policy or leave the company.

Remember that Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) may require a slightly different absenteeism policy for employees that qualify under these acts.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has recently announced revisions to its walking-working surfaces and personal protective equipment standards to reduce employees’ workplace falls that could result in injuries and deaths. OSHA claims the new rule will be more logical and make compliance more flexible. It also aims to “increases consistency between construction, maritime and general industry standards, and eliminates duplication.”

Since the specifics of this rule (essentially replacing 1990 proposed rules to revise subparts D and I) are quite complex, employers that might be affected are encouraged to seek detailed explanations from OSHA, via its Web site.

Employee reviews or performance appraisals are important components of labor management. They are not just the means to rate employees’ work record, but can also improve the employer-employee relationship and productivity; all of which are important to the bottom line.

Employee reviews can also be time-consuming and stressful, as any employer is likely to have a small percentage of employees that will receive mediocre or poor reviews. Excellent preparation for each employee performance appraisal is the key.

That starts with a detailed review process that could consist of the following elements:

• Preparation: job descriptions, previous year’s review, employee self-evaluation and performance notes of the year.
• Schedule: new employees, after first six months, all other employees once a year.
• Legal: various laws apply to the review process, such as discrimination-based evaluations and an opportunity for employees to appeal what they may consider unfair reviews.
• Form: use a professionally created review form for a comprehensive and legal evaluation.
• Communication: inform employees two weeks in advance of the review.

Knowing how to write an employee review is another important part of employers’ education and preparation. That process starts as soon as a new employee is hired.

• Explain in detail each job description, responsibilities and how he or she will be evaluated.
• Don’t rely on your memory. Take notes regularly about job performance. Help employees to address any deficiencies with training or other aids well in advance of the review. Also take notes of your discussion with employees who may require remedial help, and make it clear that they are committed to fulfill that training by a specific date.
• No cramming allowed. Begin to write an employee review at least 30 days in advance.
• Require employees to write self-appraisals approximately 30 days before the formal review meeting.
• Be specific. Whether a review is above average or below average, provide employees with positive input about how they can improve their performance during the next 12 months.

For many employers, especially small-business owners, the solution to saving time and reducing the stress of employee evaluations is a comprehensive, professionally created employee handbook. The best of them have been authored by human resources experts and include all the details of every labor management process and the necessary forms.

Various reports reveal that more than 40% of Fortune 500 companies and 12 states and the District of Columbia have responded to the call for more diversity and inclusion in the workplace by implementing policies that protect gender identity and/or gender expression.

The most progressive companies aren’t waiting for federal mandates on this issue, although no legislation has been passed or signed. Those employers that are affected by existing state laws (and many that aren’t), regarding the rights of transgenders, have instituted specific policies with strong language. They’ve added this topic to their non-discrimination training programs for employees to reduce or eliminate any potential for employment suits over this issue.

Blogging is just one of many ways the Internet has proven its value as an important information source and communication channel. One consumer-research firm estimates that 42% of the general population has read at least one blog; and this number includes those without computers or many computer skills. Another significant finding for employers is that most bloggers are younger than 19, which means they will be bringing that experience and knowledge into the workplace.

The challenge for business owners/employers is to define what is quickly becoming a fine line between how blogging can hurt their businesses and the many ways it can also benefit and improve business growth.

There are three primary negative effects of blogging for employers.

1.     Blog Attacks: Blogging has made it easy for individuals to write about their negative experiences with any business. Some many be justified, such as poor customer service, but other attacks are unjustified, but how would you know by just reading the blog! Current or former employees could use blogs to denigrate their employers, as business entities, and/or individual executives, managers, supervisors and even fellow employees.

2.     Blabbermouths: Unknowingly, employees could reveal sales and marketing strategies and even trade secrets or violate copyrights, for example. Those employees that would engage in such activities knowingly are part of number one above.

3.     The Keys to the Kingdom: Blogging, of course, is a two-way street; a blogger wants others to comment on his or her blogs. Tech-savvy companies can often find vital information about their competitors in what would otherwise be considered innocent blogs. Some could respond to an employee’s blog, surreptitiously using the name of a fellow employee to obtain classified information. Someone who wants to penetrate the computer security of any business could start a blog conversation with an employee. Once a “technie” knows some personal information about a blogger, it isn’t difficult to make educated guesses about email and security passwords, since too many people still use addresses; birthdays: family members or pets’ names; and other simple information.

On the positive side, blogging is quickly becoming an important business-building tool. Business owners can use it to reveal trends in their industries and conduct customer research. It can also be a very cost-effective method to communicate with the 15% of customers who are responsible for 85% of most companies’ revenues. To that end, a wise, progressive employer may want to hire one or more of those young, experience bloggers to create and manage beneficial company blogs.

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When the federal Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act (HIRE) became law, its purpose was to provide tax incentives to employers to hire more of the high number of unemployed. Employers (including nonprofit organizations) will be exempt from paying their share of Social Security taxes on wages paid from March 19 through Dec. 31 for new employees hired after Feb. 3, 2010. An important fine-print point is that, to qualify, those new hires must have worked 40 hours or less during the 60 days prior to their hire date. Employers also receive a $1,000 credit on their business income tax returns if they keep the new employees for at least one year.

Despite the best of intentions to help the unemployed, business owners and the general economy, the HIRE Act may offer incentives that won’t result in more employers hiring more employees. According to one small-business owner, his decision to hire more workers is not dependent on what he characterized as a “little kickback” from the government. Even as a small-business owner, he clearly understands that labor is also a commodity, and is ruled by the law of supply-and-demand.

A spokesperson for a huge global company echoed that thinking when she also stated that the HIRE Act wouldn’t have much effect on the company’s hiring practices. She said the volume of work is what drives the need to hire more workers. She added that the company is much more likely to expand its workforce because of retirements and typical employee turnover.

Of course, the federal government’s best intentions also include additional information that must be provided by employers on a revised W-2 tax withholding form and the new W-11 form, which eligible employees must complete, so employers can claim the benefit.

It seems that everyone has a cell phone; and, according to one industry report, more than 90 percent of your employees have them. Just because cell phones are virtually ubiquitous doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have an employee cell-phone-use policy.

For some companies, safety is the paramount benefit: drivers and delivery personnel being involved in accidents because they were on their cell phones. For other employers, it’s the protection of sensitive data and the bottom line as well as the company’s image that make an employee cell-phone policy so important. There are also Internal Revenue Service considerations, such as what cell phone expenses employees can charge to their employers and who may claim those expenses as deductions.

Most experts agree that your first step to create fair and manageable cell-phone policy is to invite staff members from various departments to participate: technology as the technical phone experts, attorney who understands the legal ramifications, and department managers who know which employees need cell phones for safety reasons or to be highly productive.

Together, you should be able to develop an excellent cell-phone policy if you include:

• The company goals that could be affected, such as closer management of workers in the field, improved productivity and quick access to critical data and information.
• To which cell phones the policy applies: personal (during work hours only), company-issued (always), etc.
• Comprehensively and clearly stated legal and safety issues.
• Cell-phone etiquette.
• Possible disciplinary action when the policy is violated.

Cell phones are too integrated into our modern culture to think they can be banned from the workplace entirely (although there a few extreme examples when that is necessary). Every employer should have a clear employee-use policy, however, so there are no misunderstandings, allowing cell phones to serve both employers and employees within a balanced framework.

The findings of a spring 2010 Robert Half survey reveals that many of the respondents (chief information officers) are troubled at how much social networks, such as Facebook and Twitter, distract employees during the workday. This has led to 38 percent of those surveyed stating that they have implemented stricter rules relating to employees’ access to social network sites during the workday. The new survey as well as a similar Robert Half survey in October 2009 found that the number of CIOs with policies that don’t allow any access to social network sites has remained same at a bit more than 50%.

Twenty-three percent of the CIOs in the survey said their policies specifically limit personal use, but more of them relaxed the rules when it comes to using social networks for business purposes; only 15 percent of CIOs instituted more restrictive business-use policies.

“There is no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to social-networking policies,” said Dave Willmer, executive director of Robert Half Technology, in a statement. “To be effective, guidelines should include input from stakeholders throughout the organization, including IT, legal, human resources, marketing, public relations and front-line employees.”

Employers of any size company are faced with this dilemma because social networks are legitimate business tools, and their importance is only growing. Wasting time tweeting with friends and families is wasted productivity, but employers must also be aware that the casual nature of social networking sites could make it easy for employees to share company information unconsciously (or consciously) that should be protected. That means social networking policies must be comprehensive and very specific, so there are no misunderstandings about what is and is not permitted.